NCSO assists in drug conspiracy bust

June 24, 2011

ABILENE, Texas â€” Five defendants charged in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Lubbock, Texas, with running a cocaine and marijuana distribution conspiracy in north Texas, have been arrested.Â One defendant, Semei Cuevas Rodriguez, Sr., is a fugitive.Â The announcement was made Thursday by U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas.
The defendants were arrested without incident in an early morning takedown by agents of the FBI, the Texas Department of Public Safety, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcementâ€™s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Marshals Service, the West Central Texas Interlocal Crime Task Force, the Abilene Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Nolan County Sheriffâ€™s Office.Â All are scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Scott Frost, in Abilene, Friday, June 24, 2011, at 2 p.m. for their initial appearances.
During the course of executing several federal search and arrest warrants this morning, law enforcement seized several firearms.Â Â Â
The indictment charges the following defendants with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine and 50 kilograms or more of marijuana:
â€˘ Semei Cuevas Rodriguez, Sr., a/k/a â€śThe Old Man,â€ť 50, of Mexico.
â€˘ David Mendoza Dominguez, 51, of Abilene, Texas.
â€˘ Juan Alberto Devora, 39, of Abilene, Texas.
â€˘ Armando Carrillo, a/k/a â€śPelon,â€ť 30, of Abilene, Texas.
â€˘ Jason Carrillo, 34, of Abilene, Texas.
â€˘ Pedro Chavez, a/k/a â€śEl Foco," 40, of Abilene, Texas.
â€˘ Dewey Howard Hasty, 28, of Abilene, Texas.Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Devora is also charged with three substantive counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Carillo is also charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
Chavez is also charged with one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.Â However, if convicted, each defendant faces a sentence of up to 40 years in prison, or more, and a fine of several million dollars.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Haag, of the U.S. Attorneyâ€™s Office in Lubbock, Texas, is in charge of the prosecution.